NOAA Advances American Ocean Minerals’ Area-1 Seabed Minerals Consolidated Exploration and Commercial Recovery Application to Next Phase of Review

NOAA’s substantial compliance determination moves AOM Area-1 into the next phase of federal review for exploration and commercial recovery.

• NOAA’s substantial compliance determination moves AOM Area-1 into the next phase of federal review for exploration and commercial recovery.
• The application was submitted under NOAA’s new consolidated permitting process, enabling qualified U.S. applicants to pursue exploration and commercial recovery through a single application and coordinated review.
• AOM Area-1 spans approximately 147,054 km² in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (“CCZ”), with a mineral resource of polymetallic nodules containing manganese, nickel, copper, and cobalt.

TAMPA, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– American Ocean Minerals Corporation (“AOMC” or the “Company”), which is building a responsible supply of critical minerals and rare earth elements for the U.S. and its allies through its previously announced merger with Odyssey Marine Exploration (NASDAQ: OMEX), today announced that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”) has determined that its wholly owned subsidiary AOM Area-1 LLC’s consolidated application is in substantial compliance with applicable requirements under the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (“DSHMRA”), allowing NOAA’s formal environmental, public, and regulatory review to proceed.

“AOMC was built as a platform company because the critical minerals challenge requires scale, regulatory diversification, processing capability, operational discipline, and long-term capital formation – all while navigating historically high barriers to entry in the industry,” said Tom Albanese, Chairman of AOMC and former CEO of Rio Tinto. “AOM Area-1 is an important part of that platform. It complements AOMC’s Cook Islands investments and supports our broader objective of building an environmentally responsible, global supply chain for cobalt, manganese, nickel, copper, titanium, rare earth elements and other critical minerals essential to America and its allies’ industry, infrastructure, energy, and national security.”

Enacted in 1980, DSHMRA predates both the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and provides the legal framework for U.S. companies to explore and recover deep-seabed minerals in international waters. The Act established a U.S. licensing system under NOAA’s regulatory authority to promote responsible development, environmental stewardship, and secure access to critical minerals. AOMC’s application was submitted under NOAA’s new consolidated review process, established following Executive Order 14285. Rather than requiring separate sequential applications, the process allows qualified U.S. applicants to pursue an exploration license and commercial recovery permit through a single coordinated procedure while preserving environmental review, public participation, and other regulatory safeguards.

“Regulatory readiness and environmental readiness have to advance together,” said Dr. Laura Azevedo, Chief Science Officer of AOMC. “Our approach is to build the scientific record, the environmental baseline, the engineering discipline, and the regulatory record required to evaluate these resources responsibly. The consolidated application process provides a clearer pathway for that work, and AOMC intends to continue advancing its programs with transparency, rigor, and respect for the role of regulators, scientists, and stakeholders.”

AOM Area-1’s application area comprises approximately 147,054 km² across five non-contiguous subareas in the eastern-central Clarion-Clipperton Zone. The application area was selected following a review of publicly available ISA exploration contract areas, reserved areas, and Areas of Particular Environmental Interest (APEIs), and was designed to avoid overlap with those areas.

Today’s announcement follows several recent AOMC milestones, including:

• A definitive merger agreementwith Odyssey Marine Exploration, Inc (NASDAQ: OMEX) to create a deep-sea critical minerals platform valued at approximately $1 billion.
• Equity financing in excess of $230 million in capital, including pre-public financing and private placement in connection with the proposed merger.
• The completion of Moana Minerals’MV Anuanua Moana Expedition 7, a three-week research campaign that completed 53 sampling sites with box cores and multicores and collected 4,059 physical samples.

About American Ocean Minerals Corporation

American Ocean Minerals Corporation is establishing a responsible global supply chain for critical minerals and rare earth elements sourced from polymetallic nodules. AOMC is being built as a platform company focused on responsible deep-sea exploration, environmental science, harvesting technology, logistics, processing, and commercialization across multiple regulatory pathways, including investments in companies with exploration licenses in the Cook Islands’ exclusive economic zone and international waters regulated under DSHMRA. Upon completion of its proposed merger with Odyssey Marine Exploration, Inc., the combined company is expected to operate as American Ocean Minerals Corporation and trade on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “AOMC,” subject to stockholder approvals, regulatory approvals, Nasdaq approval, and other customary closing conditions.

About Area 1

AOM Area-1 LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Ocean Minerals Corporation. AOM Area-1’s application area is located in the eastern-central Clarion-Clipperton Zone and consists of five non-contiguous subareas totaling approximately 147,054 km².